15 Helpful HTML Books for Beginners Worth Checking

If you want to learn web design and development, the first step that you should do is to study HTML – the markup language used in making the basic building blocks of web pages. To acquire the skill in coding HTML elements, you need not really have to a formal classroom instruction in a reputable IT university. You can learn it by yourself by religiously following instructional materials online such as W3Schools and Tizag.com, or if you want a more detailed and illustrative presentation, by reading HTML books.

Depending on your learning style, you will find either online HTML tutorials to be more convenient or if not, HTML books in paperback. This is actually up to you, so it is best to know where you are comfortable. If you have tried, following the online format and find it hard to digest for some reason, why not try basic HTML education by means of books? Yes, books where you can find illustrations and how-is-it-done examples, in a flip-through-page style as we know it.

Here, we are sharing with you some of the HTML books for beginners that we believe are worthy to be considered if you want to learn the ropes of web design and development. Also, we are including books for HTML5, the latest and more powerful version of HTML, as it is an increasingly popular language that will surely define the future of the web. This is where you should direct most of your focus as HTML5 and CSS3 are the standards of the future. Designers have already created a vast number of incredible HTML5 website templates. It is worth the time to check out some HTML5 examples and get inspired. One of the latest trends in Web design is the use of media queries to create responsive web site layouts. HTML5 and CSS3 are at the core of this and we have seen it used a lot and successfully in Responsive WordPress Themes.

These books will of course cost you something but it may be a very good investment if you want to have a working knowledge of basic web design and development. If you find any of these books interesting, we encourage you to visit their respective websites to know more about them. They have discussions as to what you will expect from these books should you decide to get yourself a copy. Also, if know of other materials, tools, or anything that can be of use to beginners in making them proficient in HTML, please share your knowledge below in the comments. We will highly appreciate your efforts in helping promising coders uplift their skills.

This HTML and CSS book have excellent ratings and for a good reason. While many books focus on the details in specific versions of HTML e.g. HTML 4 or 5 this book is different. The title of the book itself is evidence of this. Duckett clearly doesn’t want you thinking about HTML 4 vs. HTML5 or CSS 2 vs. CSS3. Instead, he wants you to understand the concepts that link together web technology and good design. This is a good book for people that want to understand how the over concepts work.

Right now, HMTL has not fully matured and it is still evolving. At the same time, browsers are also getting sophisticated as more and more websites use HTML5 and this book is intended to help you get on top of this current development in web and application design. This book shows you how to start adapting the language now to realize its benefits on today’s browsers. It concentrates on the practical—the problems HTML5 can solve for you right away. By following the book’s hands-on HTML5 code examples you’ll learn about new semantics and structures to help your site become richer and more accessible; applying the most important JavaScript APIs that are already implemented; using and controlling native multimedia; how to build more intelligent web forms and a lot more.

If you don’t know about the new features available in HTML5, now’s the time to find out. This latest version of the markup language has significantly change the way you develop web applications, and this book provides your first real look at HTML5’s new elements and attributes. Even though work on HTML5 is ongoing, browsers such as Safari, Mozilla, Opera, and Chrome already support many of its features — and browsers for smart phones are even farther ahead, especially iPhone’s MobileSafari browser. With HTML5: Up & Running, you’ll learn how this new version enables browsers to interact with JavaScript much more easily than before. You’ll also learn how HTML5 can help you develop applications that: Display video directly in the browser, without having to rely on plugins; Work even when a user is offline, by taking advantage of HTML5’s persistent storage; and Offer a drawing canvas for dynamically generated 2-D graphics. This concise guide is the most complete and authoritative book you’ll find on the subject. Author Mark Pilgrim writes the weekly digest for the HTML5 Working Group, and represents Google at conferences on HTML5’s capabilities. Stay ahead of the curve.

Whether you are a professional or amateur web developer you need all the HTML5 tools in your kit, and this book from the author of the best-selling Learning PHP, MySQL & JavaSript, is the fastest and easiest way there is to learn HTML5. HTML5 is the future of HTML and all developers need to get up-to-speed with what it offers, including audio and video, without using a plug-in, and a canvas area with professional tools for creating paths, lines, curves, shapes, fills, gradients, patterns, text and more. This book also provides accurate geolocation, background web workers, offline web applications, microdata, a local storage engine and many other improvements to standard HTML, such as dozens of new form tags and attributes, as described in the chapter list.

The HTML5 spec is 900 pages and hard to read. HTML5 for Web Designers is 85 pages and fun to read. Easy choice. HTML5 is the longest HTML specification ever written. It is also the most powerful, and in some ways, the most confusing. What do accessible, content-focused standards-based web designers and front-end developers need to know? And how can we harness the power of HTML5 in today’s browsers? In this brilliant and entertaining user’s guide, Jeremy Keith cuts to the chase, with crisp, clear, practical examples, and his patented twinkle and charm.

This book takes a refreshing look at the newly revised HTML language. Free from confusing language, this helpful guide will teach you how to do everything from dynamic drawings and including video on your webpage, to offline web apps and drag-and-drop features. HTML5 is the future of the Web, and with this book you’ll reach it quickly.

HTML5 boasts extensive new features that allow you to create dynamic Web pages and present users with amazing multimedia experiences. This personal training course uses a full-color book plus video tutorials to teach you how to take full advantage of the new Web standard for creating rich multimedia experiences. While learning at your own pace, you’ll discover how to approach site concept creation and bring your vision from the drawing board through to full operability. The step-by-step directions, lesson files, and instructional videos demonstrate the many exciting features of HTML5.

Beginning HTML5 and CSS3 is your introduction to the new features and elements of HTML5—all the leaner, cleaner, and more efficient code you’ve hoped for is available now with HTML5, along with some new tools that will allow you to create more meaningful and richer content. For everyone involved in web design, this book also introduces the new structural integrity and styling flexibility of CSS 3—which means better-looking pages and smarter content in your website projects. For all forward-looking web professionals who want to start enjoying and deploying the new HTML5 and CSS3 features right away, this book provides you with an in-depth look at the new capabilities—including audio and video—that are new to web standards. You’ll learn about the new HTML5 structural sections, plus HTML5 and CSS3 layouts. You’ll also discover why some people think HTML5 is going to be a Flash killer, when you see how to create transitions and animations with these new technologies. So get ahead in your web development through the practical, step-by-step approaches offered to you in Beginning HTML5 and CSS3.

This is a good starter book for people that are new to HTML5 and you will be going through real worls examples and be able to deploy some real HTML5 pages really fast. The book also cover advanced and complex areas of HTML5 but in a beginner friendly way.

This book not only cover HTML5 but also go through how to manipulate HTML elements using Javascript. It does so in a good and easy to understand way. It is a 600 page book but type and figures are large and pleasant to look at. A good book for the starter that wants a bit more than a plain HTML introduction

If you are looking for a book that will help you learn HTML and CCS from scratch this one is for you. The HTML and CSS Easy Web Design teaches web development from the ground up. Here the author discusses the basics of HTML and you can very well go along with this book even without prior knowledge of HTML, CSS, XHTML or any other web programming techniques. It is divided in three parts – HTML, CSS and XHTML – all of which complement each other. The first part introduces you to HTML and provides you with concrete examples, laboratories and exercises. This book will take you through the step-by-step procedure on how build a new and fully functional website in HTML.

If you’ve wanted to know, “how do I make a web page from scratch?” this book will explain how, step by step. This beginner guide shows you how to use XHTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create compelling Web sites. While learning these technologies, you will discover coding practices such as writing code that works on multiple browsers including mobile devices, how to use AJAX frameworks to add interactivity to your pages, and how to ensure your pages meet accessible requirements.

If you are the kind of person who want to do things your way, you can take advantage of this book to learn HTML and make a website DIY style. Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML has an easy-to-follow illustrations and step-by-step instructions on how to build a standards-compliant and beautiful website. Having a good grasp of the discussions in this book will eventually help you become a master the art of web designing.

This is not a new book but everything you need to know to create professional web sites is right here. Learning Web Design starts from the beginning — defining how the Web and web pages work — and builds from there. By the end of the book, you’ll have the skills to create multi-column CSS layouts with optimized graphic files, and you’ll know how to get your pages up on the Web.

This book will teach you how to build hand-crafted web pages the Web Standardistas way: using well-structured XHTML for content and CSS for presentation. By embracing a web standards approach, you will hold the key to creating web sites that not only look great in all modern browsers, but also are accessible to a wide variety of audiences across a range of platforms—from those browsing on everyday computers, to those accessing the Web on the latest emerging mobile devices. Even if you’re an absolute beginner in web design, this book will teach you how to build future-proof web pages the right way using easy-to-master tools which are, in most cases, free. Through 14 easy-to-follow chapters, we introduce you to the fundamentals of contemporary web design practice. Step by step we’ll assemble well-structured XHTML webpages, which we’ll then style using handcrafted CSS. By the end of the book, you’ll have a firm knowledge of the essentials of web design: everything you need to know to move forward in your lifelong journey as a Web Standardista.

Scott Stanton has spent the past decade working nights developing HTML websites as a freelance web designer, only to write about the latest HTML website design trends at his day job as a freelance writer. Scott is a regular contributor for Wix.com and you can hang on his every word @TheScottStanton”